Richard Naish on kitchen design

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Our new issue features 24 pages of inspiring kitchens and bathrooms, including the kitchen in the 2015 Home of the Year, designed by Richard Naish. In this Fisher & Paykel Case Study video, Richard talks us through the design of this extremely workable family space, its materials and the pleasures of cooking together – you can also read additional information about the space in our Q&A with him below.

HOME Did designing this kitchen [in the 2015 Home of the Year] for your family home make it any easier to cater to your requirements? And if so, what were those requirements?RICHARD NAISH Kitchens are always very personal things – what works for some will not work for others. I designed this kitchen to be very much a space that works for our unique family needs. It is open to be social with some enclosed space to make the inevitable mess, but relaxed enough that everything can be on open shelves and easily accessible when there might be a rush on for breakfast!

You have plenty of natural light from adjacent windows – is this how did the palette of warm, dark tiles and cabinetry come about?
Because there is so much natural light flooding in from the north and the east, we were able indulge in a darker, warmer palette of materials – hence the use of black tiles and cedar wall linings.

How does the kitchen relate to the adjoining room beyond the island?
It really is just one room – a dining room with a kitchen in it or a kitchen with a dining table in it.

The kitchen in the 2015 Home of the Year, designed by Richard Naish. Photograph by Patrick Reynolds.

The kitchen is designed so that mess can be hidden in a nook at one end, while the rest of it remains open to the dining area. Photograph by Patrick Reynolds.